All Diocesan Articles

The Office of Faith Events brightened the season by making their annual Christmas visit to the Sisters in Baltic. The day was filled with festive joy and the warmth of community as they shared in a timeless tradition of a Christmas Carol sing. Between songs, a special touch was added with Christmas sharing questions, sparking heartfelt memories and laughter. A favorite question, “What was your favorite Christmas gift as a child?” brought delightful responses from the Sisters, including cherished memories of a cowgirl outfit, a Chatty Cathy doll, and Ra...

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This December, the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art in Hartford welcomes the community to the Festival of Trees and Traditions: 50th Anniversary Golden Holiday Event, a cherished celebration of artistry and holiday spirit running from December 5–15, 2024. This year’s festival features a dazzling array of festive trees and wreaths, each uniquely designed and generously donated by individuals, organizations, and businesses throughout the region. The Diocese of Norwich is proud to contribute two special trees this year, showcasing the spirit of giving and creati...

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Op-ed written by Christopher Healy, Executive Director of the Connecticut Catholic Conference, published in the Hartford Courant on December 7, 2024: It took little time for the radical abortionists to lose all perspective and credibility as witnessed by the recent effort by establishment media to proclaim a new dark age for women in Connecticut. In the December 1 Hartford Courant article “Family Planning in Era of Trump,” the leaders of the taking of innocent life, Planned Parenthood, have complained that the election of Donald J. Trump will be catastroph...

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Christmas 2024 My friends, I am pleased to share with you this Christmas pastoral letter as the Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Norwich. Many of you are regular Mass goers.  Some of you come occasionally, once a month or so.  Some come once or twice a year on the major holidays of Christmas or Easter.  For others, this may be the first time you have been in a church for years or maybe even for the first time. To all of you, I say, “Welcome and merry Christmas.” Whatever your relationship with the Church may be, I invite you to c...

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The Holy Year 2025 officially begins on Christmas Eve when Pope Francis opens the Holy Door in St. Peter's Basilica. VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Hours after the last visitors and pilgrims left St. Peter's Basilica for the day, a chisel clanged and dust flew as a group of prelates chanted their prayers before a simple wall marked with a cross. In preparation for the opening on Christmas Eve of the Holy Door in St. Peter's Basilica, Cardinal Mauro Gambetti, the archpriest of the basilica, led the brief prayer service and ritual late Dec. 2.  As the cardina...

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Mariachi music resounded joyfully through the sacred space of the Cathedral of Saint Patrick in Norwich on Tuesday, December 12, 2024, as faithful from across the Diocese gathered to honor and celebrate the Annual Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. This cherished tradition brought together people of all ages and backgrounds, uniting them in a vibrant expression of devotion to the Mother of the Americas. The Most Reverend Juan Miguel Betancourt, SEMV, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Hartford, presided over the Mass and delivered a deeply moving homily that resonated w...

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